Radio Caroline, eh? Who remembers Radio Caroline? Ding Ding. It’s a radio station that has a legend that far exceeds its reality. A bit like the legend of, well, Robin Hood. Except of course, Radio Caroline didn’t live in a tree, despite also fleecing those with money.

In the 1960s it was around for a few years when there wasn’t much else to listen to, and so after a couple of years of sounding awful, it spent about two years being really popular before being consigned to the grave.

Then after a few years of nothing, along came another lot who salvaged the old ship and put Radio Caroline back on the air. This time nobody listened to what was essentially a service for hippies and stoners. Well, hippies, stoners and lonely radio enthusiasts listened.

This Radio Caroline died a few times, and then the final incarnation actually sank into the depths of the North Sea, making it extremely dead.

So, eventually another Radio Caroline was born, this time from a brand new radio ship. This tried to get rid of the hippies and stoners by playing more popular music, but to appease the hippies and stoners who were now helping run the station, there was a most confused output of old shit and current pop. Radio Caroline fans are not proud of this era. It was an era when even less bothered to listen. Well, why would they need to? There were plenty of stations on FM on land sounding a lot better.

The new radioship got put off the air by the authorities raiding it to try to stop it interfering with distress frequencies. Then after sitting out at sea for a while it broke its anchor and had to be salvaged from the Goodwin Sands, a place ships normally die, and ended up being towed around parts of the country with new owners being Radio Caroline for small legal broadcasts.

This version of Radio Caroline gave way to a non-radioship very legal and licensed version, with a studio in somebody’s bedroom. By now it was an oldies service playing a rock oriented collection of 300 or so old songs with occasional announcements from very old ‘presenters’.

This sad and remote sounding Radio Caroline is a very long way away from the original. Gone is the hype, excitement and enthusiasm that made the 1960s Radio Caroline compulsive listening for teenagers.

Probably the best Radio Caroline year was 1967. It was the final year for offshore pirate radio, and by that time the stations, including Radio Caroline, had carved themselves a very distinct identity and a massive following.

So, it was interesting to discover that Radio Caroline is about to return again. This time, Radio Caroline is not going to use a ship, well, not a ship in the sea, type ship. Radio Caroline is going to come from a spaceship.

A spaceship.

Yeah, I didn’t believe it either. Then I saw the photos of the multi-Trillion dollar vessel that Radio Caroline will be broadcasting from. It looks really exciting. It’s even got a skull and crossbones on it. And a name. It’s the SS Love and Peace. (‘SS’ stands for ‘spaceship’, not ‘steamship’, ok?)

Ok, you think I’m making this all up, don’t you? It’s true I tell ya, it’s true. Why are people always accusing me of being a wind-up merchant?

It all starts at the end of the year. I know this is true because I’ve seen the countdown. You can go and check it for yourself, just to prove it’s completely true and that I’m not making it up.

I’m not sure of the way time travel works, but at the end of 2016 it will suddenly become 1967, and all day Radio Caroline will be broadcasting live and direct from, well, 1967. In 2017. Eh?  Don’t ask me to explain all this voodoo magic.

But, I’ve read it on the internet, so it must be true.

Check out the time travelling space ship Radio Caroline here if you don’t believe me, oh ye of little faith.